Pfizer Says Refreshed Covid Shots Could Be Authorized This Month
The drugmaker's CEO Albert Bourla revealed he thinks the FDA could authorize updated covid boosters by the end of the month during an investor call. Separately, CNN reports that vaccines for flu and RSV are being rolled out to major pharmacy chains ahead of the fall respiratory virus season.
NBC News:
Updated Covid Boosters Could Be Authorized By End Of Month, Pfizer Says
The Food and Drug Administration could authorize Pfizer's updated Covid boosters by the end of August, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said during an investor call Tuesday. The drugmaker asked the FDA in June to authorize an updated version of its Covid booster that is designed to target the XBB.1.5 subvariant, a coronavirus strain that began circulating widely last winter. Moderna made a similar request that same month. (Lovelace Jr., 8/1)
CNN:
Vaccines For Flu And RSV Now Available Ahead Of Fall Virus Season
With the fall respiratory virus season just around the corner, major US pharmacy chains have begun rolling out flu and RSV vaccine appointments. Walgreens is now offering both kinds of shots, the company said Tuesday. Anyone 3 or older can get a flu shot, and adults 60 and older are eligible for the RSV vaccine. Rite Aid also plans to announce availability of those vaccines soon, spokesperson Catherine Carter says. (Musa, 8/1)
Reuters:
Pfizer Considers Cost Cuts As Demand For COVID Products Falls
Pfizer on Tuesday said it will launch a cost-cutting program if its COVID-19 vaccine and antiviral treatment keep underperforming expectations in the coming months due to plunging demand. Pfizer said it anticipates more clarity on the future size of the COVID market later this year as infection rates rise in the autumn and the U.S. switches to a commercial market from government contracts for the vaccine. (Satija and Erman, 8/1)
More on the spread of covid —
ABC News:
Why Rising COVID Hospitalizations Should Not Necessarily Be A Cause For Concern
For the week ending July 22, hospitalizations rose 12% from the previous week from 7,165 to 8,035, according to data released Monday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While a double-digit percentage jump may seem scary, experts say these numbers are still among the lowest we have seen since the pandemic began and that there is no reason to panic just yet. (Kekatos and Benadjaoud, 8/1)
Houston Chronicle:
COVID Infections Rise In Houston For Fourth Summer In A Row, Threatening Vulnerable Residents
Infections are rising in Texas and Houston for the fourth summer in a row, with many hospitals reporting an uptick in admissions and wastewater data showing increasing viral load in all but five of the city’s 39 wastewater treatment plants. Texas Children’s Hospital also continues to see an elevated number of pediatric COVID patients. (Gill, 8/1)
CIDRAP:
Long-COVID Patients Have Altered Metabolite Levels 2 Years After Infection
Levels of metabolites were altered in long-COVID patients 2 years after infection, suggests a study published today in Scientific Reports. Metabolites are products of metabolism, or the process of changing food and drink into energy, that have cell-level roles, such as providing fuel, structure, or defense. (Van Beusekom, 8/1)
CIDRAP:
Overall Risk Of Pediatric ICU Stay, Death In COVID-19, MIS-C Low, Study Shows
A University College London–led team finds a very low risk of pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admission and death from COVID-19 and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) during the first 2 years of the pandemic, with the highest risk among children with complex medical problems and neurodisabilities. The researchers conducted a population-level analysis of hospitalizations after COVID-19 infection in England among youth 0 to 17 years old from February 1, 2020, to January 31, 2022. They linked national hospital data with data on COVID-19 testing, vaccination, PICU admissions, and death. (Van Beusekom, 8/1)
Also —
CIDRAP:
Healthcare Workers' Depression Increased In Second Year Of Pandemic
A study today of 2,564 Czech healthcare workers finds that their prevalence of depression increased twice during the pandemic. The study is published in Scientific Reports. ... "This change was explained the most by increased stress, contact with COVID-19 patients, and experience of death due to COVID-19," wrote the authors, who employed a number of models to show how and why participants saw increased rates of depression. "Perceived stress has been consistently found to be a risk factor for depression in HCWs over the course of [the] COVID-19 pandemic." (Soucheray, 8/1)
NPR:
After COVID, The New CDC Director Is Focused On Building Trust With The Public
The pandemic was a chance for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to do what it does best. Instead, that public health crisis left the CDC marred by political interference and criticism of confusing messaging — and the agency lost trust among Americans. Trust is clearly one issue on the mind of the agency's new director, Dr. Mandy Cohen. She mentioned the word more than 50 times at a commencement speech she delivered earlier this year. (Pfeiffer, Lim and Intagliata, 8/2)
